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Traditional Events andCustoms in Croatia
Gimnazija Metković
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Dubrovnik Summer Festival
The summers in Dubrovnik have been marked for over fifty years by the most significant cultural event in Croatia - the Dubrovnik Summer Festival.
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The Dubrovnik Summer Festival was founded in 1950.
From July 10th to Aug 25th , the fourty-five day event is filled with music, drama, folklore performances and concerts held on city's squares, terraces of the fortresses and in the churches and palaces.
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Performances of world's names of
theatre, ballet and classical music have
made Dubrovnik Summer Festival
become the most significant Croatian
heritage brand.
Unique ambiance of indoor and open air venues of the historical City of Dubrovnik makes a perfect stage for many theatre, music, opera and dance performances. 4
The Sinjska Alka
The Sinjska Alka is a unique jousting tournament in today's Europe. It takes place in Sinj, a small town in continental Dalmatia, some 40 km north of Split. It commemorates the 1715 victory over the Turks.
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Every first Sunday in August, unless otherwise determined, the procession of the Alkari (the contenders) and their squires emerges in the upper part of the tournament field in the overwhelming splendour of their ancient arms and uniforms.
Definitely, Alka is a spectacular event which is visited by a large number of people every year. It takes places under the auspices of the President of the Republic.
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Scoring in alka: bottom
segments are worth 1 point,
top segment is worth 2
points, and the central ring
is worth 3 points.
Using a lance 290-300 cm long, the
Alkars must hit the alka in full gallop.
The alka is made up of two concentric
rings of which the outer has diameter
of 131,7 mm and the inner 35,1 mm.
The Sinjska Alka was
inscribed in 2010 on
the UNESCO
Representative List of
the Intangible Cultural
Heritage of Humanity. 7
Carnival Festivities
Carnival takes place in February and it is a tradition that goes way back. Our carnivals are famous for colorful parades and inventive ideas.
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The most famous Croatian carnival is the one in Rijeka, which is a combination of traditional European carnivals, with Venetian and Austrian characteristics combined with Slavic folklore the result of which is an amazing carnival event.
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Burning of the carnival dummy is the final act of the carnival, a spectacle in which the culprit for all the evil in town is sentenced to the punishment of being burned at the stake.
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Annual carnival bell ringers’ pageant from the
Kastav area. ZVONČARI, whose rituals evoke
fertility at the end of winter, were registered on
the UNESCO Representative List of the
Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009.11
Croatian and European Film Festivalin Pula
The festival was founded in 1954 and over the past decades it has gained significant international recognition . The festival has often served as a launch pad for new films before they are screened in cinemas around the country. 12
Croatian and European Film Festival, except for displaying works of Croatian film, offers regular international programs as well as many unique thematic programs and retrospectives.
Since 1955, The Grand Golden Arena
has been awarded for the best
achievements in film production.
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The Moreška Sword Dance in Korčula
Moreška is a romantic war dance with swords which is supposed to have first come to Korčula from Spain in the 16th century. It is still deeply rooted in Korčula and it is unique in the whole world.
It can be summarized as a story about a fight for a girl and in that sense it has its roots in the traditional Mediterranean stories and legends,
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Moro, the Black King's
son (Arab) takes by force
and imprisons the White
King's (Christian) fiancee,
Bula...
After the short dramatic action which develops
through the dialogue between
Moro and Bula, and later with the White King
as well, the armies of both kings confront.
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The Metković Boat Marathon Race
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The boat marathon race is an amateur sports competition of the ‘ladjas’,
traditional indigenous craft in the Neretva Valley. It is held annually on the
second Saturday in August, under the auspices of the President of the
Republic, organized by the Association of the Neretvian boatmen. The first
marathon was held in September, 1998.
Each rowing crew consists of 10 rowers, a
drummer and a cox, or oarsmen. There can
be a minimum of 12 and a maximum of 18
persons in each squad. Anyone who is willing
may form part of the crew: men, women,
children.
Traditional Neretvian boat (‘ladja’)
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The winning team gets the gold
medal, winning the transitional Duke
Domagoj shield (weighing 27
kilograms) and a small shield in
permanent ownership as well as a
cash prize. Runner-up and third-
placed teams receive medals, small
shields in permanent ownership and
cash prizes.
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The Folklore Festivals in Croatia
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Moonlight on the Neretva RiverThis is an event
that takes place in
the town of
Metković. It is a
traditional review
of folklore
ensembles from
the six counties
of coastal and
island Croatia.
An expert panel of
judges
nominates the
best groups
which go on to
participate
at national-level
reviews. 20
The Djakovo embroideries
Djakovo is the host town of a folklore festival, known as The
Djakovo Embroideries, which has been held at the beginning of
July every year since 1967. Its name describes the festival. There
are about 70 folklore groups taking part in this event, comprising
around 4,000 performers. Each costume worn by the participants
is bedecked with the different style of embroidery – 1,000 of
them. A mobile exibition of colours in the form of festival
procession of all participating groups moves through the town like
some living rainbow.21
The Vinkovačke jeseni Folklore
Festival «Vinkovačke jeseni» is a
folklore festival of national
importance, and also the
largest festival of its kind in
this part of Europe.
The festival offers a unique
display of cultural legacy not
only of local people, but also of
entire Croatia and a number
of foreign countries.
This festival is showing the way to
the youth population by involving
them in a large number of folklore
ensembles and festival activities, 22
ŠPANCIRFEST
Street Festival in Varaždin
Špancirfest takes place between
26 August and 4 September
in a baroque city of Varaždin. It is a
festival with street events, world music,
traditional arts and crafts, local cuisine
and other goodies, childrens’ town, etc.
During the festival there are a lot
of participants from all over the world such
as clowns, street and mime performers, folk
dancers and musicians, world music and
jazz bands, hip hop collectives, rock bands,
etc. 23
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Paška Čipka: Lacemaking on the Island of Pag
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Lace is the ultimate achievement in textile art, an individual work of human
hands made from flax, cotton, silk, agave, silver and gold threads. Its roots, as
opposed to embroidery which comes from the East, are clearly in the West.
Lace-makers of Pag did their teg (work) without any drawings. Each woman
used works from her mother and grandmothers as example, adding a personal
touch, something unique and special. Each lace is a symbol of the anonymous,
modest and self-sacrificing life of its maker.
In 2009, UNESCO recognised lacemaking in Croatia as an Intangible
Cultural Heritage of Humanity.26
RAFTING ADVENTURE
ON THE CETINA RIVER
Most tourists are impressed by the
beautiful Cetina river. The adrenalin
that the adventure gives you will
certainly entice you to return to the
place where the scenery is
gorgeous and the water is crystal
clear and clean and full of fish.
The river has a lot of waterfalls
and rapids where your
adrenaline is at its highest level.
Rafting on the Cetina river is an
adventure that lasts between 3
and 4 hours but memories about
it last forever…
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TRADITIONAL HVAR’S NEW
YEAR REGATTA
In New Year's regatta there are a couple
of categories in which contestants can
compete, for example, “optimist”, “laser
standard” and “laser radial”. The very
racing is held at small archipelago near
Hvar, which is perfectly suited for this. The
whole event lasts for several days and
ends with a big New Year party, 28
Klapa multipart singing of Dalmatia
Klapa singing is a multipart singing tradition of the southern Croatian regions
of Dalmatia. Multipart singing, a capella homophonic singing, oral tradition
and simple music making are its main features. The leader of each singing
group is the first tenor, followed by several tenori, baritoni and basi voices.
During performances, the singers stand in a tight semicircle. The first tenor
starts the singing and is followed by the others. The main aim is to achieve
the best possible blend of voices. In 2012, inscribed on the UNESCO
Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.29
HOLIDAYS IN CROATIA
CHRISTMAS TIME
Since the ninth century, Christianity has been the dominant religion in the country. Like in most Western nations, Christmas is celebrated here on 25th December but the preparations for the festival begin since the beginning of the Advent.
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Christmas bread
Gingerbread
heart
Christmas desserts
Women of the
house traditionally
start baking cookies
and cakes since
the beginning of the
Advent.
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One of the most important
parts
of Christmas is giving
presents.
One of traditions that is still
followed
today, is sowing the Christmas
wheat that stands for life and
fertility.On
Christmas
Day, Croats
wish each
other 'Sretan
Bozic' which
is the
Croatian way
of saying
"Merry
Christmas".
It is also on
Christmas Eve that
the Christmas tree is
set up and
decorations made
in every home
though many
families begin the
process days
in advance.
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EASTER
In many towns, there
are ceremonies and
processions every
night.
In central Croatia, villagers
build huge bonfires known
as KRIJESOVIThe branches are decorated
with ribbons and flowers and
woven into wreaths or crosses
known as poma.
They are taken to church to
be blessed. After the blessing,
thepoma are hung around the
house as protection against bad
luck and evil
spirits. 33
One of the oldest traditions
in Croatia is decorating and
painting Easter eggs, called
'Pisanice'.
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ALL SAINTS’ DAY
On All Saints Day people in Croatia go and
visit the graves of their closest and beloved
ones. They bring flowers and light candles.
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People walk around
a cross made of
thousands of candles lit
on All Saints’ Day.
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